Topic: Overwintered Kale

[Hector]

Hi
FOr the past two seasons some of my Red Ursa/ kale crosses have survived through winter...they have a woodeny stem and lots of leaves...which still taste ok.

Some are starting to produce flowers already....I am impressed with these plants and want to collect my own seed as they cope well in some parts of a very wet/ windy site.

BUT

Is it a case that I should stop some flowering to keep cropping/ avoid bitterness? Or best to pull out all the ones except some for seed collection and sow more.

I am planting other Kale too.

[galina]

Do you have other flowering kales too?  Kale are outbreeders and cross freely with each other.  But the outbreeding feature is also needed for good seed.  A dozen plants is not too few for seed saving!  It sounds a lot but this is what is recommended to stop inbreeding depression, where the following generations are smaller, weaker plants.   If you have several varieties in the mix, inbreeding depression is not so much of a worry, but the feature of the mixture itself will give you good and rubbish individual plants.

If you want to propagate a few more plants for yourself, you could take cuttings and root them too.  Just remove any flower buds.  No crossing, no danger of inbreeding depression and you can keep a variety that has done so well for you without letting plants seed, which can often mean the end of life for brassica.  And which is a bit of a gamble if the seed is crossed. 

At this time of year it is relatively easy to take cuttings, place them in a pot, not too hot, out of direct sunlight, with a thin poly bag around them to keep moisture in.  Many should root. 

Kale plants are at their best this time of year and into late autumn/winter.  Not so much in warmer weather.  They are so tender at the moment.  Much tougher and less succulent when the weather heats up. 

Good luck. 

Hi
FOr the past two seasons some of my Red Ursa/ kale crosses have survived through winter...they have a woodeny stem and lots of leaves...which still taste ok.

Some are starting to produce flowers already....I am impressed with these plants and want to collect my own seed as they cope well in some parts of a very wet/ windy site.

BUT

Is it a case that I should stop some flowering to keep cropping/ avoid bitterness? Or best to pull out all the ones except some for seed collection and sow more.

I am planting other Kale too.

[squeezyjohn]

I tend to eat my kale "broccoli" before the flowers open, they're normally very sweet and tender and add to the pot for dinner.

[Hector]

Thanks folks. I just hadnt thought of cuttings........losing the plot ;) Ill sort that.

Last two seasons I had a Curly Kale....cant recall name without my notebook.....and also Sutherland Kale.

Im planting more Red ursa ( delighted with this), White Ursa and some Dazzling Blue this year.

[Jayb]

and also Sutherland Kale.

As a bit of a side track, I've got some little Sutherland kale seedlings peeping through, just wondering if they did well for you and do they taste more like cabbage or turnip?

[earlypea]

and also Sutherland Kale.

As a bit of a side track, I've got some little Sutherland kale seedlings peeping through, just wondering if they did well for you and do they taste more like cabbage or turnip?

I did grow Sutherland a few years ago and found it slightly distasteful - I do have a bit of an aversion to 'turnip' types, so yep!  I've not grown it again.

[Jayb]

Oh dear, that's one for turnip and one for not turnip like! I should look the name up.

[Hector]

Earlypea....do you mind me asking where you got your seed from. We got some from HSL and some from USA....and they do taste different to each other

[Vinlander]

At this time of year it is relatively easy to take cuttings, place them in a pot, not too hot, out of direct sunlight, with a thin poly bag around them to keep moisture in.  Many should root. 

Brassica cuttings are a new thing for me...

For normal cuttings of untried species I tend to avoid really soft parts and go below the area where the stem snaps easily - but remove the leaves apart from the growing point (and in this case eat them).

In the this case with brassicas can you also take sections from the strong green parts further down the long stem? (shame to waste it). Can the shoots that appear later from the stump be successfully rooted as soft cuttings?

Incidentally my favourite "broccoli" harvests are from species that have already given a good crop of something else. They are all too delicate to boil but are superb steamed.

 Particularly Cavolo Nero (for flavour) and giant chinese mustards (for punch) followed by red sprouts, then proper heading broccolis like 'purple cape', then green sprouts and everything else brassica-y.

PSB may be better than some of the latter, but it's more trouble than it's worth for a 'one trick pony' that also needs continuous picking, and (for me) seems to suffer more from grey aphid than the 'all rounders'.

Cheers.

PS. Unfortunately the 'broccoli' from land cress is just a bit too punchy to use as steamed greens, though a moderate amount can work well in a stir fry.

[earlypea]

Earlypea....do you mind me asking where you got your seed from. We got some from HSL and some from USA....and they do taste different to each other

Don't mind at all......it was from Realseeds several years ago.  I really wanted to like it, being rare and heritage plus it was exceptionally abundant.  Interesting that there might be different strains or different kales, same name, maybe?

[Hector]

Im going to resow them and compare......just to check Im not going crackers :)

[galina]

Vinlander, this time of year I snap off the little sideshoots, stick them into pots in the conservatory, with a very thing plastic bag around the pot (when I remember) and root them on the watering table.  I have also broken bits off and just stuck them into the soil outside, but that is much more hit and miss.  You should be able to try rooting any part of the plant, but the young fresh sideshoots work best for me, at least at this time of year. 

[Vinlander]

Vinlander, this time of year I snap off the little sideshoots, stick them into pots in the conservatory, with a very thing plastic bag around the pot (when I remember) and root them on the watering table.  I have also broken bits off and just stuck them into the soil outside, but that is much more hit and miss.  You should be able to try rooting any part of the plant, but the young fresh sideshoots work best for me, at least at this time of year. 

Thanks Galina - that makes a lot of sense, as the new shoots break away with a thin layer off of the old stem - and that should give them a bit of resistance to whatever fungi or bacteria are responsible for turning really soft shoots into mush. 

Cheers.